20130301-10 ENG A Diamond anniversary gathering

200303

FRIDAY 1 MARCH 2003 – Steve insists he is well enough to drive himself to his 10.30am hospital appointment in Leeds. He drops me in town to do some shopping. 6 hours later Steve arrives home. He’s seen Dr Gilleece whose only concern is the GVHD revealing itself in a body rash for which she prescribes a hydrocortisone cream. She is not concerned about his eyes that have been watering continuously for about a month but says antihistamine tablets should help a bit as it is probably due to some of the medication. I had already written to her asking when further restraints would be removed and she says Steve can now drop the clean diet and also mix a little more with people whilst still taking sensible precautions. In the afternoon I do more gardening. The pruning seems never ending but I guess this is the downside of inheriting a well stocked garden. I pick up Claire and Natasha and drop Claire in Saltaire where she and Richard are going to the beer festival. Natasha comes shopping with me and we just have time to eat before all heading over to Halifax. Daniel has the star part of King Lear in the school play and really wanted us to see him but we couldn’t risk the crowded hall so arrive towards the end and stand at the back watching his last few scenes. He has amazing make up and looks and acts like a really old man. It takes some time for him to emerge at the end as so many people want to stop and congratulate him. Back home I get the difficult task of removing the rest of his false whiskers and make up.

KEIGHLEY

SATURDAY 2 MARCH – Lisa has invited the family round for an early diamond wedding anniversary celebration for Mom and Dad. We are the last to arrive which works out well as Mom had been asking whether we would be able to join them or not. It is a lovely day so Steve is fine as we can sit out in the garden and baby Ruby is upstairs napping. Lisa has plated up Steve a selection of food so he can join us when the rest of us tuck into a lovely buffet. Sian has made a Liverpool themed birthday cake for Stacey (her birthday has just passed) and a Diamond Wedding cake and it is delicious. We pose for group photos; sadly the only direct relations missing are the lads – son Kevin and grandsons David and Stuart. It’s a really lovely gathering but after a few hours Steve is ready to head home.

KEIGHLEY

SUNDAY 3 MARCH – Dave was working yesterday but has today off and drives over in his new car. Donna is poorly so he is alone. He calls in to see Mom and Dad then comes up for lunch. He’s looking well and packs away plenty of food before heading off to meet his mate and then stay in the studio overnight.

KEIGHLEY

MONDAY 4 MARCH – Steve has a follow up eye appointment at Bradford Royal Infirmary. Previously they were concerned about haematoma’s and fissures caused by chemo and the great news is these have now gone. They want a repeat check up in 6 months and if that is clear they will sign him off. In the afternoon Couchsurfing friends John & Shirley arrive from York. I’ve just finished making scones and topped with jam and cream they soon disappear. The time flies as chat bounces between family, travels and health. They follow Steve to Farish House to meet Mom and Dad and see the studio that they are taking for a week in May when John’s brother from Canada comes over and stays nearby in Haworth. Late in the evening Incommunities arrive and fix 3 problems with the toilet so it now flushes properly and doesn’t have water leaks. Mind you we have very little toilet paper left and they seem to have used a whole roll checking it out!

KEIGHLEY

TUESDAY 5 MARCH – I’ve had car insurance quotes through www.confused.com and phone up Admiral who have offered the best rate. It doesn’t take long to complete proceedings and pay up the £566.04 to cover us both to drive Mom’s car when we buy it next week. Once the mist clears the sun breaks through and it is a lovely day so we set out walking. We head directly across the valley and find a bridge over North Beck and end up going along Fell Lane before cutting back over another bridge near a farm. A round trip of about 3 miles and most enjoyable although real extremes as we have nice countryside and then back alleys through Braithwaite with some awful houses and gardens full of burnt out mattresses and other junk. It’s national pie week so I make an apple pie to follow the steak and kidney pie for lunch.

KEIGHLEY

WEDNESDAY 6 MARCH – We pick up the car from Mom’s and head of with my driving my Mum’s car and Steve driving his. It is really foggy and we make very slow progress to Manchester where we stop off to see David at the garage where he is working. After arriving in Market Drayton we chat with Mum about her car. She is considering not selling it but says that if Pauline’s daughter Mandy from next door wants it she will sell if not keep. I pop down to give it a clean over before showing Mandy but she is dead keen and has seen us arrive and comes round to look. Mandy has just returned from Kenya to look after her Mum and her rental car goes back on Saturday so she wants something quickly. I take her for a test drive and agree a fair price with her. Mum seems happy to have it all sorted and we can complete the paperwork before we leave. I’ve almost decided the best course of action is to completely re roof the cottage at Newport rather than more repairs so set about contacting a few more people to meet us there on Friday, it’s a bit like juggling loads of balls trying to space the appointments without overlaps. Although Mum has had a meal at lunchtime she manages to make room for the spaghetti bolognaise that I cook. Netty pops round in the evening and we arrange to go out with them on Friday.

MARKET DRAYTON

THURSDAY 7 MARCH – I spend time clearing out Mum’s car and putting things into our “new” car. It’s raining so I drop Mum at the Festival Centre to meet her friend for lunch then do some shopping. We’ve invited Mandy and Pauline round for tea so I get the ingredients. In the afternoon Mandy calls with the money for the car so I deal with the formalities. My heart sinks when we get a call from the registrar at St James but it is just a concern over one of Steve’s test results and need needs to up some medication. Pauline is not up to joining us in the evening but Mandy comes round for the Chinese. For the first time in months Steve is able to eat seafood and enjoys the Szechuan prawn dish. Mandy & I stay in the kitchen having a good chat, she’s a free spirit and has led a very interesting and colourful life.

MARKET DRAYTON

FRIDAY 8 MARCH – At the cottage we find Milo busy decorating. The gas man had to cancel but our friend Paul arrives and we can show him the brackets that need fixing. He is also going to help me deciding which roofing contractor to take and is there when the first one arrives. He tries to up sell with things that are really not needed and Paul points this out. In between roofing contractors Father Anthony from next door calls round. We’ve just had trees pruned and he wants some of the logs. We also talk through an option of changing the property boundaries to benefit us both. The final roofing quote comes from Steve Banner, recommended by our mutual friend Dave Gough. I have now decided to go the whole hog and have the cottage completely re roofed reusing the original Staffordshire Blue tiles and adding reclaimed ones. Also we will have insulation dropped into the roof areas that are inaccessible and new gutters and downpipes. I’ve decided not to let price be a big factor but guarantee, gut feeling and recommendation lead me to pick Steve to do the work. It’s a great relief to have made that decision and I can now focus on other things that need to be done. We pick Mum up and take her out to Bridgemere Garden Centre, the biggest in the country. There are numerous shops there and we browse before taking lunch in the cafe. Another bit of shopping finds both Mum and Steve buying footwear. Steve picks up some walking boots so no excuse for us not to take longer hikes. We’ve a short time at Mum’s before we pick up Netty & Ian to go for a meal at the Lord Combermere in Audlem. We have a good meal and chat and make plans to go away together to a Hotel in the near future.

MARKET DRAYTON

SATURDAY 9 MARCH – We help Mum move furniture in the lounge ready for her concert rehearsal this afternoon. After dropping her up town we visit Bobby, Steph and baby Olivia. She is adorable and it is great to have a cuddle. On to Newport to check things out at the cottage and friends of the tree man are there collecting logs. This leaves just the small bits and we should be able to get them burnt. At Pete & Carols we catch up with their son Robert and enjoy cream cakes whilst catching up on the gossip. We have a good journey back and arrive mid afternoon, my intentions of doing more cleaning of the car are scuppered as it is bitterly cold and trying to snow.

KEIGHLEY

SUNDAY 10 MARCH – Claire has entered the Mother’s Day Keighley 10km run and we walk down to Highfield Park to cheer her on. It is wickedly cold and still trying to snow and the course is very muddy. She is not the least out of breathe but finding it hard going as she passes us at the 6.5km mark after an almost continuous uphill run. When we drive up to her house later she is disappointed with her 1 hour 3 minute time be we think it is a remarkable achievement under the circumstances. We’ve got together and bought a Marks & Spencer’s Mother’s day dinner for 4 and add a few extras to create a really tasty meal. Daniel is at his Dad’s so Steve & Natasha, being the only non mothers, do all the clearing up. It’s a cold day and frequently attempts but fails to snow, in fact the snow that comes down is ultra fine and looks fake, more like sprinkles of polystyrene.